Common Grackles are glossy blackbirds, but in sunlight, they display iridescent, metallic colors including purple and steel-blue on their heads, and bronzy-purple on their bodies. Males are more vibrant, while females are duller, often appearing dark brown. Both sexes have bright yellow eyes and long, dark tails. These two birds were perched on brown branches of a tree with more branches and blue sky in the background. Seen at Great Meadows National Wildlife Refuge in Concord, Massachusetts.

Two #CommonGrackles hanging out together with their multi-colored, iridescent feathers glowing in the midday sunlight (Great Meadows NWR, Concord, MA - 3/13/26) 💙🪶😍

#birds #blackbirds #TwosDay #ColorADay #BlueTue #ECK #nature #birdphotography #NikonP950 #Massachusetts

A Ring-billed Gull with a white front and head, gray wings and black tail with white tips, yellow-green legs and eyes, and a yellow bill with a black ring. The bird was standing on a patch of ice in the blue waters of one of the ponds at Great Meadows NWR in Concord, Massachusetts. There are several pieces of dead, brown lotus plants in a few places near the bird.

Today's Alt #BirdOfTheDay theme is #Gulls. I rarely see gulls in the places I frequent, but there happened to be several #Ring-billedGulls on one of the icy ponds at Great Meadows NWR (Concord, MA - 3/13/26) 💙😊

#birds #birding #BirdPhotography #NikonP950 #Massachusetts @robcrank68.bsky.social

Limpkin with reflection in water. Brown wading bird, foraging in shallow water, white spots throughout the brown body, neck, and head of this hunter.

Great Blue Heron, neck curved ready to strike. Reflection in shallow water. Large body wader, long legs, slate blue body and neck, long yellow sharply pointed beak.

Pied-Bill Grebe, swimming in lake, producing a bit of bow wave as it cuts through the calm still water. Looking over it's short beak, the reflection of this little brownish swimmer can be seen.

Little Blue Heron, neck fully extended, ready to strike downward to snag a tasty treat. Blue body, reddish neck, long sharp bill, all reflected back in the calm still water.

Entries for today's #BirdOfTheDay theme of #Reflections, any bird reflections, the Alt theme is #Robins.

- Limpkin
- Great Blue Heron
- Pied-Billed Grebe
- Little Blue Heron

#birds #photography #ECK
#PhotographersOfBlueSky
#NikonP950 #florida

I hiked through the snow to the Stone Bridge at Ipswich River Wildlife Sanctuary in Topsfield, Massachusetts to see the views. The bridge was covered with white snow, and part of the bridge made of dark gray stones with green lichen in places is in the foreground. Past the bridge, you can see the frozen creek with white snow along the edges, red-brown dried foliage in the wetland areas, a line of green evergreen trees, and a cloudy, bluish-gray sky.

A layered view from the Stone Bridge looking towards the frozen creek, snow-covered wetlands, and line of evergreen trees under a mostly cloudy blue-gray winter sky (Ipswich River WS, Topsfield, MA - 3/8/26) 🌲❄️😊

#StunDay #ECK #photography #NikonP950 #landscape #Winter #Massachusetts

A pair of Common Goldeneye diving ducks. In Massachusetts, they're winter visitors found along the coast and in open water, identified by their large, rounded heads and bright yellow eyes. The male has an iridescent dark green head with a circular white patch, black back, and white sides. The female has a chocolate-brown head, gray body, and a black bill tipped with yellow. These were two of six that I saw making their way down the Concord River at Great Meadows NWR in Concord, Massachusetts. I was on the other side of the river but was able to get a few shots of them.

Today's Alt #BirdOfTheDay theme is #Green, any bird with green in its plumage. I loved seeing this pair of #CommonGoldeneye ducks on the #ConcordRiver! (Concord, MA - 3/13/26) 💚👁️

#birds #ducks #wildlife #ECK #BirdPhotography #NikonP950 #BirdsSeenIn2026 #Massachusetts @robcrank68.bsky.social

A creek with dark water leading to the river and flowing through an area covered with white snow and tall trees with brown trunks and some evergreen trees with green foliage. In the background, you can see the grayish-blue sky against the landscape. The Ipswich River runs through that area. Seen at Ipswich River Wildlife Sanctuary in Topsfield, Massachusetts.

A creek that leads to the Ipswich River seen flowing through a snow-covered, forested area of the sanctuary last weekend (Ipswich River WS, Topsfield, MA - 3/8/26) 🌲❄️😊

#Scape #ForestFriday #ECK #photography #NikonP950 #landscape #Winter #snow #Massachusetts

A long, weathered, brown wooden boardwalk winding through sand dunes covered with white snow, and leading over to the Atlantic Ocean. There are shadows of the boardwalk on the snow in a few in places. There's a sliver of blue ocean showing along the skyline under bright blue skies. Seen on a winter day at Parker River NWR on Plum Island in Newburyport, Massachusetts.

One of the boardwalks that winds through snow-covered dunes over to the beach, with a sliver of blue ocean visible along the skyline (Parker River NWR, Newburyport, MA - 2/19/26) 💙❄️🤩

#BlueSkyMonday #EastCoastKin #photography #NikonP950 #landscape #Winter #PlumIsland #AtlanticOcean #Massachusetts

A tiny Marsh Wren with a white and pale brown front, rusty-brown back with black-and-white streaks, a white eyebrow and a barred, raised tail. This bird was perched on a red-brown cattail and was singing its typical loud and buzzy sounding song. There were more cattails against the light blue water in the pond, and light and dark brown blurred foliage along the edge of the pond. Seen at Great Meadows NWR in Concord, Massachusetts.

Today’s alt #BirdOfTheDay theme is #cute birds. One of my favorite birds that I find to be extremely cute is the tiny and very vocal #MarshWren (Concord, MA - May 2025) 😍🤎

#birds #wrens #EastCoastKin #FlyDay #BirdPhotography #NikonP950 #GMNWR #Massachusetts @alan678.bsky.social

Two Rosette Spoonbills, taking off from a pond, wings wide, necks stretched out trying to gain precious altitude

Two Ospreys, wingtips vertical to ground, in a fly-by formation like at an air show. Springtime romance comes early in the year for Ospreys in central Florida.

Two Sandhill Cranes preparing to roost for the night

Two Limpkins on lunch patrol.

It's #TwosDay where #Pairs #Duos #Doubles

Here's four...
- Rosette Spoonbills
- Ospreys
- Sandhill Cranes
- Limpkins

#birds #photography #EastCoastKin #NikonPhotography #ukbirding #birdphotography #NikonP950 #BirdLife
#OrlandoWetlands
#Florida

A male Tree Swallow with a white front, blue head, and blue & brown wings, perched on a brown metal pipe that's strapped onto a wooden bird box. It was early spring, and there was new green grass on the ground and brown trees with green leaves in the blurred background. Seen at Broadmoor W.S. in Natick, Massachusetts.

Today's #BirdOfTheDay theme is #StareDown, birds looking right at you. This #TreeSwallow was not too happy that I stopped to take his photo! (Natick, MA - 5/1/24) 😠💙

#birds #birding #swallows #EastCoastKin #BirdPhotography #NikonP950 #Massachusetts #Spring @robcrank68.bsky.social

A Black-capped Chickadee with a white and buff-colored front, a white face with a black cap and chin, and black and white wings and tail, perched on a brown branch of a Magnolia tree with a brown tree trunk and white snow in the background.

For today's alt #BirdOfTheDay theme, here's Dee, one of many #Black-cappedChickadee visitors. I can't tell them apart so they're all "Dee" 😁 (Westwood, MA - 1/24/26) 😍🤎

#birds #Paridae #EastCoastKin #LittleBirds #Winter #BirdPhotography #NikonP950 #Massachusetts @robcrank68.bsky.social

Full moon in a black sky.

Full moon in a black sky.

Full moon in a black sky.

Moonlight casting shadows from a bare maple tree in the snow. A cleared sidewalk leads away from the point of view of the photographer. Houses in a residential street are in the background.

Snow moon from Oxford, Ohio - 1 February 2016. First three pics taken with my camera. 📷 #NikonP950

A snow-covered path winding between dried light brown foliage in a marshy area with dark green evergreen trees and bright blue skies with puffy white clouds in the background. Seen at Ipswich River W.S. in Topsfield, Massachusetts last winter.

A snow-covered path leading through dried foliage in the marsh with bright blue skies and puffy white clouds above (Topsfield, MA - Feb. 2025) 💙🤩

#BlueSkyArtShow #clouds #EastCoastKin #Winter #snow #nature #photography #NikonP950 #landscape #Massachusetts

This Tufted Titmouse is a small songbird with silvery-gray upperparts, a white breast and belly, and a distinctive gray crest. It has a small black patch of feathers on the forehead just above the beak, and large black eyes. This bird was perched on one of several brown branches that were covered with light green lichen, and you can see blue sky in the background. Seen at Ipswich River W.S. in Topsfield, Massachusetts.

I just came across this photo of a #TuftedTitmouse staring right at me for another entry to today's #BOTD theme of eye contact (Topsfield, MA - 2/26/25) 😍🖤

#birds #Paridae #BirdOfTheDay #EyeContact #EastCoastKin #BirdPhotography #NikonP950 #MassAudubon

Feel better @alan678.bsky.social!

Carolina Wren singing

Today's #BOTD theme is birds singing or calling. This male #CarolinaWren perch on a #hydrangea flower defends its territory singing away! (Falmouth , #CapeCod MA )

#birds #CarolinaWrens #BirdOfTheDay #singing #EastCoastKin #BirdPhotography #NikonP950 #Massachusetts
@alan678.bsky.social

A breeding male Bobolink with feathers that are mostly black with a white back and rump, and a rich buffy nape. This one was perched on some fence wire against a background of bright green spring grass, with some sprigs of yellow grass around him Bobolinks are members of the blackbird family. I saw this one and several others during their mating season at Daniel Webster W.S. in Marshfield, Massachusetts.

Today's #BOTD theme is birds singing or calling. This male #Bobolink in breeding plumage was looking for a mate and singing away! (Marshfield, Mass. - 5/14/25) 😍💚

#birds #blackbirds #BirdOfTheDay #singing #EastCoastKin #BirdPhotography #NikonP950 #Massachusetts
@alan678.bsky.social

A male Black-capped Chickadee with a black cap and throat patch, bright white cheeks, a soft gray back and wings with white edgin), and whitish underparts with buff-colored sides. This bird was in the tree next to my deck, and was perched on a brown branch while also holding half of a tan colored peanut with his claws! Seen in Eastern Massachusetts.

For today's alt #BOTD theme of #Paridae species, here's one of my regulars, Charlie the #Black-cappedChickadee, holding a peanut he just grabbed from my deck😍🤎

#birds #BirdOfTheDay #Paridae #EastCoastKin #nature #BirdPhotography #NikonP950 #Massachusetts #BirdsSeenIn2026 @robcrank68.bsky.social

This small Tufted Titmouse has a white breast and orange on the side, gray wings and tail with white edges, dark eyes, black beak, and a soft gray crest on its head. The bird is perched on a brown branch of a tree with other brown branches in the background. Seen in Eastern Massachusetts.

Today's #BOTD is any bird with a short beak, so here's one of my regular #TuftedTitmouse visitors 😍🪶🖤

#birds #Paridae #BirdOfTheDay #ShortBeaks #EastCoastKin #nature #Winter #BirdPhotography #NikonP950 #Massachusetts @robcrank68.bsky.social

A juvenile Osprey with dark brown and white feathers, holding onto a fish he had just caught and brought back to a tree to eat. He's on a brown branch of the tree, with green leaves and a blue sky in the background. Seen in my friend's backyard on Great Diamond Island, one of the islands of Portland, Maine.

While at my friend's cottage in August, I saw this juvenile Osprey up in a tree eating a fish he had just caught (Great Diamond Island, Portland, Maine) 😍🐟

#birds #Osprey #BirdOfTheDay #FoodFinds #EastCoastKin #BirdPhotography #NikonP950 #nature #Summer #Maine @alan678.bsky.social

A view from the bank of the Concord River in Concord, Massachusetts in January. The river was partially frozen and covered with ice and white snow on both the ice and the riverbanks. There are many bare, brown trees with winding branches along the banks and reflected in the water, plus some shadows of tall trees on the bank. The sky was bright blue with no clouds in sight.

A scenic shot of the Concord River on a cold and sunny winter day under bright blue skies. I never get tired of the wonderful views from this spot! (Concord, MA) 💙🤩

#StunDay #EastCoastKin #SilentSunday #winter #nature #ConcordRiver #Massachusetts #photography #landscape #NikonP950

A small Black-capped Chickadee with dark gray and white wings, white and buff-colored belly, white face, black cap and chin, and dark eyes, perched in a brown tree covered with newly fallen white snow, with snow still falling around him. Seen in Eastern Massachusetts.

Jan. 1, 2026 has started off with a fresh layer of snow and a few snow squalls here in Massachusetts. I caught this cute little Chickadee just chilling in the snow in a tree nearby 🤩❄️

#birds #Black-cappedChickadee #ArtYear #JanuArty #fresh #snow #EastCoastKin #photography #NikonP950 #nature

Female (top) and male (below) Yellow-shafted Northern Flickers with a brown back, spotted white belly, black chest crescent, gray crown, and tan face, bright yellow under the wings and tail, a red patch on the back of the head, and a black "mustache" stripe on the male. They were on the brown branches of a tree set against brown and yellow foliage in the background. Seen on New Year's Eve 2024 at Stony Brook Audubon in Norfolk, Massachusetts.

For #WoodpeckerWednesday, here's a pair of Yellow-shafted Northern Flickers from New Year's Eve last year! (Norfolk, Massachusetts) 💛😍🪶

#birds #birding #woodpeckers #NorthernFlickers #EastCoastKin #BirdPhotography #NikonP950 #nature #Massachusetts

A male Dark-eyed Junco with a slate-gray back, head, and breast, white belly, and white outer tail feathers, perched in the brown branches of a tree. These birds arrive during fall migration in Massachusetts and leave during spring migration, and are known as "snowbirds".

I spotted this male Dark-eyed Junco (Slate-colored) hanging out in the tree by my deck, and took a few photos through the window (Westwood, Mass. - 12/25/25) 😍🖤

#birds #sparrows #Dark-eyedJunco #BirdOfTheDay #MostRecent #Scape #EastCoastKin #BirdPhotography #NikonP950 #Massachusetts

A large group of Tree Swallows with white chests and a mix of brown and blue head, wing and tail feathers, flocked together in a tree with bare brown branches against a bright blue sky. Some of the birds are preening and some just looking around. Seen during the summer at Daniel Webster W.S. in Marshfield, Massachusetts.

For today's #BOTD theme of groups of birds, here's a large group of adult and juvenile #TreeSwallows perched in a tree at Daniel Webster W.S. (Marshfield, MA - July) 💙

#birds #swallows #BirdOfTheDay #Groups #EastCoastKin #BirdPhotography #NikonP950 #Massachusetts #nature @robcrank68.bsky.social

A Black-capped Chickadee with a white front and cheeks, buffy sides, black cap, and black throat bib, perched on a brown branch of a tree covered with freshly fallen white snow. Seen in Eastern Massachusetts.

For today’s alternative #BOTD theme of birds in snow, etc., here's a cute #Black-cappedChickadee in the tree by my deck during a snowstorm on 12/14/25 😍

#birds #Paridae #BirdOfTheDay #snow #WinterBirds #EastCoastKin #AnimalArtTuesday #BirdPhotography #NikonP950 #Massachusetts @alan678.bsky.social

A Tufted Titmouse with a white front, rusty sides, a black beak and forehead, and a gray back and head with a prominent gray crest. The bird was perched on the brown branch of a tree below my deck in Eastern Massachusetts.

For #SmallBirdSaturday here's a #TuftedTitmouse that I captured a few days ago through the glass and between the (cropped out) rails of my deck. This cute bird is in the Paridae family 😍🖤

#birds #LittleBirds #BirdPhotography #NikonP950 #nature #Massachusetts @javajanegallery.co.uk

A fierce looking little male Tree Swallow with a white front, blue head and brown and blue wings perched on the top of a rusty brown pipe and staring at me as I took photos from a safe distance. It was May 1, and there's a blurred background of new green grass and brown and green trees. It was also the start of nesting season, so the swallows don't want you anywhere near their nest boxes. I've had my head buzzed by them many times as I was checking nest boxes for Mass Audubon Broadmoor in Natick, Massachusetts.

For today’s alternative #BOTD, here's a small male Tree Swallow staring right at me as I took a few photos (Natick, Massachusetts - May) 🐦😠💙

#birds #swallows #TreeSwallow #BirdOfTheDay #SmallBirdsBigPersonality #EastCoastKin #BirdPhotography #NikonP950 #MassAudubon @alan678.bsky.social

A quiet trail lined with reddish brown leaves and brush, an empty brown, wooden bench, trees with some leaves still clinging to the branches, and dark gray and white clouds and blue sky overhead. Seen at Great Meadows NWR in Concord, Massachusetts.

Moody view of a late October storm sky hanging over the landscape along a quiet trail (Concord, Massachusetts) ☁️🖤

#BlueSkyArtShow #sky #ArtYear #SensoryArt #seasons #Autumn #EastCoastKin #clouds #nature #photography #NikonP950 #Massachusetts

The blue waters of the Concord River with reflections of bare, brown trees along the riverbanks, a touch of white snow along the muddy brown bank, and clear blue skies above. This scene was captured at Great Meadows NWR in Concord, Massachusetts.

A pretty December scene of the Concord River--my favorite spot to stop when I'm at Great Meadows NWR! Too cold to go today, but here's a shot from this day last year 🤩💙

#Scape #EastCoastKin #photography #landscape #NikonP950 #nature #baretrees #reflections #snow #ConcordRiver #Massachusetts

An American Robin with a gray-brown back, orange-red breast and belly, a dark head with yellow beak, and a white patch under the lower belly and tail. This bird was on a brown branch with green lichen and green leaves in the background. Seen in Concord, Massachusetts.

For today's #BOTD, here's one of our most vocal songbirds, the #AmericanRobin, just singing away along a trail in Concord, Massachusetts in June. 😍🧡🎶

#birds #thrushes #BirdOfTheDay #Songbirds #EastCoastKin #HolidayRobin #BirdPhotography #NikonP950 #Massachusetts @alan678.bsky.social